Protected coastlines (Ramsar)

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Protected coastlines

Our coastlines are some of the most beautiful in the world. To protect certain areas of these, Jersey signed up to the Ramsar Convention.

What is the Ramsar Convention?

The Convention on Wetlands, signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, is an intergovernmental treaty which provides the framework for national action and international co-operation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.

How many parties are included?

There are presently 159 contracting parties to the convention, with 1,888 wetland sites, totaling 185.3 million hectares, designated for inclusion in the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance.

Jersey’s Ramsar sites

Jersey has designated 4 Ramsar sites:

south east coast of Jersey

Les Écréhous & Les Dirouilles

Les Minquiers

Les Pierres de Lecq (the Paternosters)

Ramsar Management Authority (RMA)

The Ramsar Management Authority was established in early 2010 to formulate and implement the Ramsar management plans that will be produced for each of the 4 Ramsar sites. The authority consists of stakeholders including:

RMA minutes

Management plan

Jersey has an obligation under the Convention to prepare a management plan for each of the Ramsar sites. The Ramsar Management Authority has published the management plan for the south east coast and is working on the other 3 plans.

Once a management plan is published the Authority work to fulfil the objectives and implement the action plans.

Ecological status of the south east coast Ramsar site

A report commissioned by the Department of the Environment and the Waterfront Enterprise Board in 2010 has been published. The report is a review of the current status of the south east coast Ramsar site.